![]() Have a look at this picture of a B-52 Stratofortress cockpit and you will see what I mean! – (Wiki Link)Īltitude, airspeed, heading, bank angle, rate of climb, course, waypoints, weather radar, other aircraft location, and dozens of other flight parameters are easily shown. In older aircraft, each parameter was shown on an individual dial that took up a lot of room. In modern cockpits all the flight data is collated onto digital glass screens in front of each pilot. Dataĭata is all the information pertaining to the control and position of the aircraft. Buttons are used to input the desired frequency and the numbers show the pilot the frequency they inputted and are listening/transmitting on. During its movement from stowed to locked it shows 3 yellow indication lights, or if one becomes seized and is not locked, it can show a red indication for that particular leg.Īnother example could be the numerical display of one of the communications frequencies. Most outputs are displayed as LED indicators, needles, or numerical readouts.įor example, when the landing gear is fully down and locked in position it shows 3 green indication lights on the landing gear panel. When a system is in a certain configuration the pilots may be required to know what configuration it is in to allow them to make decisions based on its operation or for checking against a step within a checklist. If any buttons need to be pressed it is easily done from any seat.Įach Engine Goes Into an Automatic Start With the Turn of Each Knobįor example, buttons to turn on the aircraft landing lights and window wipers, dials to set the temperature for the cockpit or a lever for selecting the landing gear to its down position. When coming into a hospital helipad, normally the pilot in the right seat does the landing but depending on where the wind is coming from and the approach path to be flown, the instrument panel can block the view of the flying pilot.Īt this point, the pilot in the left seat takes control and completes the approach and landing with minimal effort because the cockpit layout around each seat is almost identical. In the helicopter cockpit you see above, the flying pilot sits in the right seat, while the pilot monitoring and doing all the radio and navigation work sits in the left. ![]() Infront of and directly next to each pilot seat will be its own set of controls, buttons, dials and displays so that no matter which seat a pilot is sat in the primary devices used to control and protect the aircraft are immediatley to hand. This is the main reason why there seems to be so many things – Duplication. This is to allow either pilot to control a system no matter which seat they are sitting, whether they are flying the aircraft or monitoring the aircraft. If you look closely at a modern cockpit you may notice a lot of items are duplicated for both seats. The cockpit is where most of these input devices are congregated to allow pilots to access every item in one place and that is why there seems to be so many buttons, knobs, and dials. What Do All the Aircraft Cockpit Buttons & Switches Do?Īircraft are complex machines comprising of many, many systems that all need some form of input and control from the pilots to operate correctly and at the right times. I still remember showing my dad the cockpit you see above of the AW139 helicopter I was flying and his eyes turned to dinner plates! This article is how I explained the cockpit to him so he understood what ‘all that stuff’ was. ![]() It’s an overwhelming feeling of ‘ I have no idea what the heck all this stuff does‘ but with training and time, it soon becomes familiar. Buttons & switches in the middle control aircraft systems like lights, climate, fire, and other equipment that are generally not used for primary flight control.Įven as pilots, when we first transition from a basic training aircraft into the cockpit of a modern airplane or helicopter we too feel the same. Many of the buttons and switches in aircraft cockpits are duplicated for both pilots to allow the aircraft to be flown from either seat. To most people, this seems like a scene from the Starship Enterprise and you may wonder how the pilots know what each bit does! When you walk onto an airplane to take a flight you have probably glanced through the open cockpit door to be greeted with a room that seems to be full of screens, buttons, switches, dials, and circuit breakers.
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